Episode 10
Loss Maiden (喪失乙女, Soushitsu Otome) is the tenth episode of the Tasogare Otome × Amnesia anime series. It was released on June 11, 2012. Synopsis Teiichi finds himself looking through the eyes of Yuuko and, to his embarrassment, sees Yuuko changing her clothes. However, this experience is beyond his control as now, he and Yuuko are one, and he relives her memories as if he is Yuuko herself. After changing to Seikyou Academy's uniform, Yuuko calls out to a certain Yukariko, who appears to be Yuuko's younger sister... and Kirie's grandmother. Yukariko tells her of a certain Asa, who is still bedridden, and Yuuko reminds herself to visit her later. Yukariko, however, protests about her plan to visit Asa, as she is sick and might transmit her illness to Yuuko, but Yuuko slaps her in response, urging her to calm down, to no avail. Yuuko later goes out to push through her visit to Asa's house. There, Teiichi witnesses the current situation of the town that was once famous for its copper mine nearby, and is now suffering from a mysterious illness that has already taken the lives of many, including Yuuko's neighbor, the Nakabayashis. Upon arriving at Asa's house, Yuuko quickly offers some lunch to Asa. Although she refused the offer upon thinking that she would die soon, she decides to eat anyway, although her poor appetite doesn't help in nourishing herself. Yuuko then gives Asa some candy from a rectangular can. Although Asa was able to smile at the sweet taste of the candy, it still dawns her that she will die eventually, as with everyone else in her family. Yuuko tells her that she will be fine, and even tries to prove a point by trying to eat the same piece of candy that Asa threw at her. Asa tries to stop her from doing so — and supposedly taking in the plague as well — but Yuuko repeatedly assures her that she will not die from the plague. Before leaving for home, Yuuko hands over one of her cat-bell bracelets to Asa, telling her that it is a charm that will protect her from her illness. Outside, Yuuko sees her sister Yukariko alone and in tears. It turns out that in fear of getting the plague, she doesn't talk with anyone except her sister, and Yukariko goes with her after feeling relieved by her presence. Yukariko continues to worry about the current status of things, and in response, Yuuko tells her that ways to cure the plague are already on the way, and to not lose hope. The siblings soon notice the village elders heading to the direction of Seikyou Academy. Yuuko thinks that they are planning for their next move towards the current situation in the town, and she decides to attend the meeting... in secret. Inside Seikyou Academy, the elders' talk has brought grim news. It turns out that the Nakabayashi family has been the thirteenth family to have perished to the plague, and now, even the health of some of the elders are worsening, as well as their families. The village elders are becoming desperate to find a way to save themselves. Soon, one of the elders speak about the shrine ruins where the school now stood, and how it might have cursed the town because of the construction of the school there. Another elder thinks that it is impossible, since the shrine has long been destroyed by airstrikes during wartime, but the first pointed out that it doesn't dismiss the fact that there had been a shrine under the school's foundations. The topic soon shifts to the possibility of a curse punishing the village, and the eldest of the elders suggested a bloody proposal: to offer a proper sacrifice. However, a sickly person or an elderly one would not be enough to appease the gods. They later arrive at an agreement: they shall sacrifice the person who will be chosen by Akahito, the messenger of the God of Mining in the form of a person chosen at random from the remaining villagers. The conversation is too much for the Kanoe siblings, so they decide to leave. However, Yuuko's cat-bell necklace gave away their presence, and they soon find themselves hiding from the elders, who are worried that their plans would be revealed prematurely. Fortunately, aside from being shaken by the elder's urge to sacrifice their fellow townsfolk to save themselves, the Kanoes escape. Asa later joins the Kanoes in their home, and although worried about the wellbeing of the siblings, Yuuko assures her that she will be fine. Meanwhile, Teiichi thinks about the actions of the village elders, and the decision of the siblings to take her in, which probably stems from their urge to save Asa from being sacrificed. Meanwhile, the two Kanoes continue to take care of Asa. Later, the siblings enjoy a bath together, but the talk about the sacrifice suddenly turns the atmosphere into a more tense one as Yuuko declares that she will do something about the plague. Yukariko, whose anxiety over Yuuko overwhelms her, runs out of the bath. After the bath, Yuuko decides to see Asa in her room. However, she is not there, and what worries Yuuko most is that Yukariko did not see her either, and there is a piece of cloth torn away from her clothes. Despite Teiichi's urges for Yuuko to not look for Asa, Yuuko runs to Seikyou Academy and upon seeing the fiery color of torches inside the school premises, she rushes right in, and there, Asa mentions Yuuko's name. And it was the sign the village elders need to commence the sacrifice. Before Yuuko could run away, the elders took her by her arms and legs and carried her to a hole in the wall. Then, in a split second, the feeling of bones breaking... and the darkness inside... overwhelms both Teiichi and Yuuko. Soon, Yuuko and Teiichi come to, and the feeling of pain in her leg soon returns to torment them. However, Yuuko, instead of worrying for herself, decides to thank the gods for avoiding Asa and Yukariko from being sacrificed. Their eyes soon shift to the dim lights of candles from a distance, and despite her injured leg, Yuuko crawls towards the shrine, and inside, Yuuko finds a mirror. There, she sees her horrible condition — her pale skin, cracked lips and disheveled hair bear witness to her suffering as a sacrifice. Soon, the desperation of staying alive takes over Yuuko as she tries to call her help. But her cries remain unheard. Hope slowly abandons her like the light of the temple's candles flickering out. Soon, Yuuko experiences her final moments. Unknown to her, Teiichi is there to join her during her last moments of suffering. Then, a new persona is born within Yuuko: a persona that loathes that who caused her pain and suffering. However, Yuuko manages to fight this new persona. As her life slowly fades away, Yuuko decides that it is not her fault. Then, Shadow Yuuko manifests, and Teiichi is dragged back into the real world. At that moment, Teiichi, Yuuko and her shadow meet at the place where everything began... the secret passageway inside the Paranormal Investigation Club room. Characters By order of appearance *Teiichi Niiya *Yuuko Kanoe *Shadow Yuuko 'New Characters' *Yukariko Kanoe *Asagi Adapted from This episode is original to the anime series. Trivia *The title card of this episode, compared to the others, is in sepia tone, denoting the setting of the episode. *The end card for this episode is contributed by Mel Kishida, who illustrated the Kami-sama no Memochou light novel series. *Shadow Yuuko instead of Yuuko herself speaks for the first time in the next episode preview. 'Cultural References' * Yuuko has a can of Sakuma drops during her visit to Asa's house. *The candles inside the underground temple actually helped shorten Yuuko's survival. Since fire eats oxygen constantly to keep burning, it ultimately robbed Yuuko of the air she needs to survive, which is one of many things Yuuko needed to survive underground. The candles being put out also signifies that the oxygen there is too little for even a small flame to keep on burning, let alone for a person to utilize. 'Referbacks' *In this episode, it is shown that Yuuko has a tendency to stub her toe. This has already happened in the manga. *This episode also references the story of Akahito, which eventually becomes one of the Seven Wonders of Seikyou Academy. 'Unanswered Questions' *Why is Teiichi depicted as a young child in his visions of Yuuko's memories? Category:Episodes